Thursday, August 18, 2011

The Bill August 18, 2011

I bought so much good stuff this week it's crazy. Crazier still, everything was amazingly awesome. With so much good stuff to choose from, you'd think it'd be hard to pick just one to write about. You'd think.

Come join me after the graphic and check out the best of the best.

Daredevil The Way He Should Be:DareDevil # 2Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Paolo Rivera

Now this is how Daredevil should be.

Don't get me wrong, the Frank Miller-style dark, brooding Daredevil has his place, but it gets a bit tedious after a while. What made Frank Miller's take on the character so great was that it spun something new out of the old superhero yarn. Daredevil had been wallowing for years in stories that he didn't belong in, most notably one involving a time traveling robot crime boss. Something needed to be done, and Frank Miller figured it out.

He grounded the character and, in the process, made him stand out from the rest of the spandex crowd. It was totally awesome and still is to this day. The problem is that everyone now thinks it's the only way of doing Daredevil. Somewhere along the way, the baseline for ol' Hornhead went from 'Scarlet Swashbuckler' to 'depressing and near homeless'. It was okay for a while, but now it's getting more than a bit tired.

After years of Smith, Bendis, Brubaker, and Diggle all doing their best to make ol' Matt Murdock a modern day Job, it's time for Daredevil to return to his fun-loving roots courtesy of Mark Waid and Paolo Riveraa. In two issues, Waid has managed to not only keep the grounded aspect (at least so far) while still having fun in the larger Marvel Universe.

The first issue, which I didn't write about, blew me away in presentation. Clearly whatever they're paying Rivera isn't enough because the man is a freaking genius. The small touches of body language, the layouts, everything about the art in this book is pure, unadulterated instant classic. I'm officially a huge fan. It should be noted that the writing wasn't too shabby either, as Mark Waid is in top form with this book. And the good times keep rolling with issue two.

Daredevil, as he's wont to do, is chasing down the truth to a recently dismissed client. Said client's inability to find a good lawyer has perturbed our hero, sending him on a quest to find out why. The trail leads him to an abandoned electronic store where DD discovers the villain behind it all. And I must say, it's a villain who I'm surprised DD hasn't gone up against more often in the past given how their powers match up. Needless to say, I'm excited about the next issue.

It's funny, if you would have told me that Daredevil would be this much fun when it was announced months ago I would have dismissed it in an instant. Under the 'Big Shots' banner, the book looked like it would be in the same mold it had been in for years: Dark, dreary, grim, and gritty. In other words, not exactly what I jones for when I crack a cover. I am pleasantly surprised though, and recommend that you start reading it too. I promise you won't be disappointed.